Anthony B

When: Fri., Sept. 19, 9 p.m. 2008Price: $20-$25

Reggae singer Anthony
B. -- aka Keith Blair -- may have his maternal lineage to thank for many
attributes of his music. His Seventh Day Adventist mother and Revivalist
grandmother raised him in a rural Jamaican church, where Blair learned the hand-clapped
rhythms and antiphonal song styles of his ClarksTown
parish. He also inherited their religiosity, but applied it in a way that
neither woman could condone -- as a teenager Blair became enamored of
Rastafarianism, of which his mother vehemently disapproved. Though the singer's
shift in consciousness created an untenable rift in his family, it also led him
to make some exciting and thought-provoking music. Now known by his stage name,
Anthony B. (a.k.a. "the Trendsetter"), Blair combines politically strident
lyrics with infectious rhythms that often have a real folk base. He's an
incredibly versatile musician, capable of leaping from the up-tempo club hit
"Tease Her," to the spiritual ballad "In Time of
Trouble" during the course of one set. Catch him Fri., Sept. 19 at the Shattuck Down Low
(2284 Shattuck Ave.
in Berkeley)
with Rootz Underground. 9 p.m. $20-$25
ShattuckDownLow.com